Photos: Elusive Snow Leopards Thrive in Surprising Spot

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Thanks to the vigilant eye of camera traps stationed high in
Afghanistan's remote northeast mountains, researchers have
uncovered exciting news: A population of endangered snow
leopards, one of the most elusive big cats on the planet, is
thriving in the region.

The big cats live among the
dramatic peaks of the desolate Wakhan Corridor, a narrow
strip of land 220 miles (354 kilometers) long, and sandwiched
between Tajikistan to the north, Pakistan to the south, and a
tiny border with China to the east.

Camera traps captured shots of the spotted cats at 16 different
locations across the region, the first time the technology has
been used in Afghanistan to document the rare animals.

"This is a wonderful discovery; it shows that there is real hope
for snow leopards in Afghanistan," said Peter Zahler, deputy
director for Asia Programs at the Wildlife Conservation Society,
in a statement.

Although snow leopards once roamed many of Central Asia's
mountain regions, the species has suffered declines as high as 20
percent in the last 16 years. Researchers with the Wildlife
Conservation Society, the organization that conducted the camera
trap studies, say a mere 4,500 to 7,500 snow leopards still
wander in the wild.

A Wildlife Conservation Society study examining the plight of
snow
leopards in Afghanistan — the species is threatened by
poaching, the illegal pet trade and run-ins with angry shepherds
who don't appreciate the cats eating their charges — was
published in the June 29 issue of the Journal of Environmental
Studies.